Biomedical subjects

D D Glover

Publications and source records attributed to D D Glover.

22 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

High performance ion exclusion chromatographic characterization of the vaginal organic acids in women with bacterial vaginosis.

Vaginal organic acids have previously been detected by gas-liquid chromatography, but we have applied an ion exclusion high performance liquid chromatographic procedure to the analysis of vaginal discharge samples. This procedure has the advantage of not requiring derivitization of non-volatile acids and provides the convenience of a technique which does not require the use of flammable gasses, while allowing the identification of at least 18 different acids from the same chromatographic analysis. Vaginal discharge from women with symptoms of bacterial vaginosis was collected on weighed swabs and analysed for the presence of organic acids. The results were compared to the organic acid content of samples obtained from the same cohort of women after treatment with metronidazole. In addition, samples were obtained from asymptomatic women and these samples were analysed in the same manner. The number of organic acids present in samples from women with bacterial vaginosis was greater than the number found after treatment or among asymptomatic women. Succinic acid appeared to be inversely related to lactate concentration and succinate:lactate ratios were greater among women with bacterial vaginosis before treatment than after treatment. Liquid chromatography has proven useful as a means of evaluating the metabolic end-products of vaginal microorganisms in situ.

Acetates↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Serum erythromycin levels in pregnancy.

Erythromycin is the recommended therapy for pregnant women with chlamydial infection. Despite the fact that this drug has been available since 1952, relatively little is known about its pharmacokinetic behavior in pregnant women, and no investigations have been conducted in women who were in the third trimester of pregnancy. In this study, 10 women were treated with erythromycin for chlamydial infection during pregnancy; 7 of these women were in the third trimester of pregnancy, and 3 were in the second trimester. Serum samples were obtained at 0.5, 1, 2, 3, and 4 hours after a 500-mg oral dose of erythromycin base and were analyzed to determine absorption and peak serum levels of erythromycin. Results indicated that absorption was delayed and serum levels were diminished in comparison with values reported in the literature for patients in the second trimester of pregnancy. In 2 women, erythromycin serum levels were not detectable at any time during the 4 hours of the study; these 2 women also experienced the most severe gastrointestinal symptoms. Although the size of our study population was small and certainly not definitive, the data suggest that in patients in the third trimester of pregnancy, severe adverse gastrointestinal events may forewarn of subtherapeutic plasma concentrations of erythromycin, which could have consequences for the treatment outcome.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The effects of diabetes on placental aromatase activity.

Diabetes complicates 2-3% of all pregnancies and is associated with an increase in both perinatal morbidity and mortality, though reasons for these adverse outcomes are unknown. Estrogen biosynthesis is a critical factor during pregnancy and is carried out in the placenta via aromatase (cytochrome P450 19A1), which catalyzes the conversion of C-19 androgens to C-18 estrogens. Previous studies have shown that hormones such as insulin-like growth factors and insulin regulate aromatase activity when studied in vitro. Interestingly, levels of these hormones are altered in patients with diabetes. Thus, we hypothesized that the presence of maternal diabetes may alter placental aromatase activity and thus estrogen biosynthesis, possibly serving as one factor in the adverse outcomes of babies born to mothers with diabetes. To this end, we measured the production of 19-hydroxyandrostenedione, 19-oxoadrostenedione and estrone in 30 placental tissues from diabetic patients, using [7-3H]androst-4-ene-3,17-dione as a model substrate for aromatase (P450 19A1). A statistical difference was detected in the percentage of 19-oxoandrostenedione formed between the overt and control groups (P < 0.05). Additionally, NADPH P450-reductase levels were measured in these same tissues to determine whether alterations in this enzyme necessary for aromatase activity could be affected by diabetes. No differences in reductase levels were detected among the patient groups. However, a statistical correlation was found between NADPH P450-reductase activity and the formation velocities of all three estrogen products (P < 0.05). Thus, it appears that the presence of diabetes does not affect placental aromatase activity.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Diagnostic considerations in intra-amniotic syphilis.

Amniotic fluid is rarely used in the evaluation of syphilis during pregnancy but was available from a woman with positive serologic tests in the 30th week of gestation. Nonmotile intra-amniotic spirochetes were seen by dark-field microscopy 20 hr after treatment with benzathine penicillin G. The identity of the organism in amniotic fluid was confirmed by immunofluorescent staining. Less than 0.5 units/ml of penicillin was present in the amniotic fluid at this time. The amniotic fluid was positive in the Venereal Disease Research Laboratory (VDRL; Atlanta, GA) test, and the concentration of IgM was elevated as was the ratio of lecithin to sphyngomyelin. Phosphatidyl inositol and phosphatidyl glycerol were also present in the amniotic fluid. After treatment the lecithin-sphyngomyelin ratio declined; phosphatidyl glycerol disappeared, whereas phosphatidyl inositol was still present. Despite evidence of intrauterine growth retardation at 30 weeks, the infant born at 37 weeks was of normal weight and length; however, the head circumference was below the tenth percentile. These studies suggest that analysis of amniotic fluid may provide new insights into the biology of syphilis in pregnancy, but does not constitute a recommendation for routine examination of the amniotic fluid in mothers with reactive serologic tests for syphilis.

Adult↗